ALLIANCE MEMBER

Works for me. I'd swap out the things that are obviously totally non traditional and probably keep the chassis as if it works well. Plus keeping it comfortable enough to jump in and make the long hauls.

And if we have all been day dreamers since we were 12 and discovered those cool car magazines that means we really didn't and don't have A.D.D. after all doesn't it.

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With ALL of your resources in Austin, have you thought about a "bolt" in roll cage and spec-ing the coupe for Bonneville for a "door slammer"? I know/have seen that you have a HECK of a motor in that coupe & I bet thru friends down there in Texas you could have your self a Bonneville car for next August.

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The steering, bags, driveline, etc.... that bug you about the '38 are some of the same parts that have made it a bullet-proof driver for 15 years. Your Tudor & Coupe are nice but there's a lot to be said for being able to hop in, hit the key, & go - as far as you want, as fast as you want - without worrry.

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With ALL of your resources in Austin, have you thought about a "bolt" in roll cage and spec-ing the coupe for Bonneville for a "door slammer"? I know/have seen that you have a HECK of a motor in that coupe & I bet thru friends down there in Texas you could have your self a Bonneville car for next August.

Just a thought.........

Chris Nelson
Kansas

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I'm definitely going to put a roll bar in it, but I don't know if I want to go down the competitive route with this car. I have... ahhh hemm... another long-term project going down that road.

i wouldnt sell either.... i bet you cam dangerously close. "Gee, with that money i can buy a nice roadster!".

tilt steering, contemporary suspension and airbags would bug me too. the drive line, not at all.

sodbuster - thats a good idea.

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I have been thinking a lot about roadsters lately... a '29 on deuce rails... and I've been thinking about 37/38 cabriolets done up westergard style as well... I'm sick. But I can't sell this thing.

If I'm honest with myself, the contemporary suspension and airbags do bother me, but at the same time I spent so much love on that thing and got so much help setting it up from so many special folks. The Mustang II was actually fabbed with the help of the crew chief from my race team. We bought the bags from a truck supply place as "AirRide" didn't exist yet. The 9" came from my first race car. Just so much stuff like that on the chassis...

I'm afraid if I ditched it, that 25 years from now I would hate myself for it. So, I'm gonna keep the chassis pretty much as is... with some minor changes. And despite what I think of the aura, this chassis does perform pretty amazingly - handles, stops, and goes wonderfully.

I am gonna put a limeworks column in it with an old bell 4-spoke that I have. I'm gonna redo much of the interior as well. As for under the hood, the big SBC might be getting a bit tired, but I am holding on to it as long as I can. That said, I am gonna change a lot of stuff under the hood. One of the things that kills me is the big ass chrome power booster I mounted on the firewall. That's gonna go... What was I thinking?

There's a lot of little things really... I guess I grew up and left my car behind... But I still love the young, dumb, and stupid me. When finished, this car really was a pretty big accomplishment for me. I never thought I could do it... and I did... that means something.

Member

this too will pass? i hope..when ever I hear stories / ideas like this, I always say leave it build another, does it really need new tires, then you can change the wheels for the better, it's together leave it. It's a wonderful ride. But then again you can pull it off too, so good luck.

Member

They say our taste in things changes about every ten years, not completely, just aesthetics. Some of what we thought was cool ten years ago tends to look different. I bet its alot about the look of your car that has you wanting to change it.

Just change the wheels and tires for now, I bet that will make ya happy.

Member

To me the Doane Spencer vibe doesn't fit with a '38 Coupe... why would he have used a car like that? Doane was what we all hate to admit... a REAL hot rodder... always on to bigger and better...
During the time that magnesium wheels were available, I'm sure a '38 coupe wasn't near the top of his totem pole of cars to build... hence a T-bird...

Personally I'd buy a stocker chassis, swap the body and leave this chassis sit... its a big job but you can always just swap it back again someday if you wanted....

You can leave this current chassis dissassembled in your attic or loft.. a reminder of the good times and lessons learned... but be happy driving around in what will actually make you happy...
I think its the memories that are making you happy... the chassis is just a reminder of those memories.... its not a memory on its own and its not making any more if your always wishing it was something else... all its doing is discounting the good memories already stored away...

I know these are 39's(close enough)...but this is more what I can see sitting beside the coupe and sedan (and roadster and cabriolet)

Member

Just as you revere the Hot Rod and it has it's place in history the street rod has it's place as well. Just as there are hot rods that are done poorly and hot rods that are done well there are street rods that follow the same cues. A well done car from either of these genres is time less. You yourself know that there are advantages and disadvantages to automobiles from each of these eras. Your forum is definitely a treasure to the hotrod but at the same time you can and have appreciated the performance and virtues of a car that many would consider OT. I only have the one truck, this is because to me a car is like a mistress, they have needs, they need love, there is only so much of a guy to go around, when you say that the car is family it establishes that there is a love for the car, and it's a nice tight looking street rod, in ten years the trend may be to covet the well built sanitary street rod as well as the time less hotrod. As long as you keep a sanitary eye towards detail you will be fine, the crowd you hang with will keep you within the boundaries of good taste and timelessness if you stray, you won't. What ever you decide it will be top shelf, just have fun and follow your emotions for the car, try not to kill off the karma that jars the memories of your life with the car. You will know what not to change, pay attention to what stirs you. Most importantly, enjoy the process.

Member

i got a car i built 15 years ago,56 chevy, got a tilt column, disk brakes, ceterbolt heads, and a few other things that sorta bug me. But me and my dad built this thing when i was in high school. to tell you the truth im just not that into it anymore. Sure i would drive it if the pinion seal wasnt bad. Its fast and im scared im gunna wreak it. The car is just so special to me. I cant get rid of it, i cant change it. Ill never leave it outside. I guess ill just look at it for now till i love it again like i did. But why god why did i think a street rod leather wraped aluminum banjo stearing wheel would look good in a 56 chevy? I was 15 i guess. But thats how it was when me and my dad built it.

Member Emeritus

There's some obvious instant changes you could pull off, like that chrome booster. Just change it little by little, so the car of your past remains intact, yet evolves some. Hell, your friends from the past evolve some, and yet remain the same. (graying hair, etc..) Let this car evolve slowly as we all do.

Member

I've been told a big bore non-power racing master cylinder works pretty good. Maybe return the braking system under the floor with a big bore M/C.

On a personal note, from time to time your entries seem like they come straight outta my brain. (generally speaking). I've been entrusted with my 38 chevy, literally. Not only is it a family heirloom, but the rest of the living family all has input about what should or shouldn't be done to it.

I love this car because it has my father's sweat and tears all rolled up in every part... but there are things he did I'd like to change.. quite the conundrum.

Member

Don't be too eager to change and old friend of the family. Wheels are an easy fix and came be changed back later.

There are a lot of guys that changed their rod to meet the current fads...wood or billet laden dashboards, huge tubs for the Micky Thompson tires etc. etc. Like it or not your car has become an icon to many. There have not been many 38 coupes that had "the look" and still kicked ass on the track.

I could be wrong but I bet 15 years from now you will have nostalgic feelings about your old 38 ass whipper. You and your family might be glad that you didn't do anything rash back in 2010. Every time I think about my first 34 P/U I think about my son asleep in my wife's arms coming home from a rod run. (I know I was a terrible dad.) Things have changed since then but the memories are still real.

I'd love to see a 38 40s era custom. Ya think that might scratch your itch? It's your deal but think about it before you jump in the deep end.

Member

Just as you revere the Hot Rod and it has it's place in history the street rod has it's place as well. Just as there are hot rods that are done poorly and hot rods that are done well there are street rods that follow the same cues. A well done car from either of these genres is time less. You yourself know that there are advantages and disadvantages to automobiles from each of these eras. Your forum is definitely a treasure to the hotrod but at the same time you can and have appreciated the performance and virtues of a car that many would consider OT. I only have the one truck, this is because to me a car is like a mistress, they have needs, they need love, there is only so much of a guy to go around, when you say that the car is family it establishes that there is a love for the car, and it's a nice tight looking street rod, in ten years the trend may be to covet the well built sanitary street rod as well as the time less hotrod. As long as you keep a sanitary eye towards detail you will be fine, the crowd you hang with will keep you within the boundaries of good taste and timelessness if you stray, you won't. What ever you decide it will be top shelf, just have fun and follow your emotions for the car, try not to kill off the karma that jars the memories of your life with the car. You will know what not to change, pay attention to what stirs you. Most importantly, enjoy the process.

Member

My 1st car (an O/T musclecar) has been off the road now for 3+ years, the longest ever not driving, as I kinda lost interest in it, even though I love it the way it is (weird right?).....now I daydream constantly for the day it's back on the road. Took to a bodyshop to see about having the rust issues repaired, as I simply do not have the time. Alot of $$$....so I may just have to keep daydreaming.....

Cool write-up man....
But don't go changing yer car to make it "relevant"....cause it already is, as it is, and ya'd miss the way it was if ya go changing it.....

Member

The flip side to your JJ entry is that sometimes we daydream TOO MUCH about a car. We spent so much thought and time designing and building it in our heads on the front end, that after the car is "done", we continue to do so. Stop. Leave it be. It is what it is. A true milestone and definition in the growth of you as a traditional hotrodder. Remember how you were back then. That car embodies that. You can still go out to the garage and feel it.

I think you should fix what is wrong with it, the thing that keeps you from driving it, and put in some windshield time before you do anything rash.

ALLIANCE MEMBER

I think I would leave it alone, I plan on having a car for every occasion, my trusty old blue beer hauler, my '34 for Sunday drives and local stuff, My Zephyr for going out on the road (built much like your car underneath), and my '32 Vicky Winter Beater....